The burgeoning reputation of Al Kazeem is greater still after his success in the Prince of Wales's Stakes, the feature race on day two at Royal Ascot. Consistent Irish success at the meeting helped to send off Camelot as the favourite but last year's Derby winner was only fourth and now seems a busted flush.

It cannot have helped Camelot that his pacemaker, Windsor Palace, missed the break under Seamie Heffernan and found himself unable to get near the front, being immediately trapped on the inside rail. Paul Hanagan seized the initiative on Mukhadram, gradually building the tempo and stealing a handy lead by the turn for home.

But James Doyle had settled Al Kazeem in a handy fourth from the off and set his horse alight in plenty of time to reel in the leader. Nothing else threatened to get into the argument, with The Fugue running on into third, just ahead of Camelot.

The winning trainer, Roger Charlton, suggested on Channel 4 that the horse's campaign might now be "maybe the King George [here at the end of July] and then the Arc [in Paris in October]". "We always thought we had a really good horse here," he said. "He's very tough, very genuine."

A big, heavy animal, Al Kazeem was limited to a single race in 2012 by a pelvic fracture. "The name of the game is patience," Charlton said. "Henry Cecil always said that: patience, patience and more patience."

Of Doyle, Charlton said: "For a young man who's not ridden many good horses, I'm so pleased for him. We've asked him big questions and he's delivered."